The leadership of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF has tabled the demand for true federalism among other things before the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi.
PANDEF made the demand at an interactive meeting held on Friday in Yenagoa when Obi visited Bayelsa State in continuation of his presidential campaign.
The group’s demand read to the Labour Party candidate which was signed by Senator Emmanuel Ibok Essien,
National Chairman and Dr Godknows B. Igali, Secretary, Board of Trustees, insisted that Obi shows commitment to a true federal structure if elected president of the country.
Senator Essien while presenting the region’s demands told Obi, “when you win you have to protect our interest because the Niger Delta is the region that produces over 80 per cent of the revenue of the country and we cannot be taken for granted. We are asking you to consider structural adjustment/devolution of power with more resources to the regions. This will help the regions to develop at their own pace and will help the country to grow.
“We also want you to look at the restructuring of NDDC, which was established to help the Niger Delta region. The policies, including regional master plan which were made have not been implemented. Also, projects like railway within the South South, referral hospitals, agricultural value chain plants, the East- West road which for over 20 years has not been completed.
“The immediate reactivation of all sea ports in the South South and creation of new ports to encourage movement of goods and services from the South South through the South East and North Central to the North East.
“This will also boost economic and employment opportunities for our young people.
“Relocation of the Headquarters of International Oil Companies, IOCs, to their areas of operation in Niger Delta.
“Supporting the setting up of modular refineries to promote employment opportunities, check security challenges in the Niger Delta and supplement local production of refined products.
“Completion of the Gas Mega City in Delta State, the Brass Fertilizer Complex in Bayelsa State, and the reactivation of ALSCON Aluminum Smelter Plant in Akwa Ibom State as well as formation of Coast Guards under the supervision of the Nigerian Navy to bolster Maritime Security.
“The I6-Point Agenda – we presented the 16-Point Demand to the present administration on 1st November 2016. We will provide copies to you and your team for your perusal and finally, we like to place on record, the desire of the South-South Zone to play a critical role in the success of your government, when you win as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Your Excellency, the South-South Geopolitical Zone hereby requests for strategic position in government.”
Responding, the Labour Party Presidential candidate promised to harken to the cry of the people of the Niger Delta.
He said: “We (the Nigerian state) have been very unfair to the Niger Delta. It is unacceptable the way the region has been treated considering their contributions to Nigeria.
“We run a country that is not productive, a country that has been churning out poverty to everybody. There is no excuse for the non-completion of the East-West road. The list is endless of what is happening in the Niger Delta.”
He decried the situation where Nigeria depend mainly on the crude oil from the Niger Delta instead of harnessing the country’s rich agricultural potential, citing countries like Malaysia whose economy is driven by palm oil.
“We have land but we cannot feed ourselves because we are sharing the money from the Niger Delta and this breeds poverty.
We cannot continue this way, we want to remove that sharing formula with the production formula, everybody must produce something.
We want to secure and unite Nigeria, we want to be able to ensure rule of law, and ensure an equitable and just country. We can’t have this without proper devolution of power. There is no reason we cannot have state police to secure our people. There is no reason we cannot have local government police. We need to secure ourselves.
“We want to move the country from consumption to production. We will start by ensuring those who are producing today are taken care of and we assure the Niger Delta of our commitment.”
Whatever is wrong with Nigeria, we’ll fix it
Before this, Obi had assured Nigerians that whatever was wrong with the country he and Ahmed Datti possess the mental and physical capacity to fix it.
Obi stated this at the Ox-bow Lake Pavilion, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State during the Labour Party LP, Presidential campaign rally on Friday.
Obi, who had earlier had a town hall meeting with students, an interactive meeting with the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, and met with monarchs at the state council of traditional rulers lamented that Bayelsa State and the Niger Delta have not gotten a fair share from the Federal Government despite contributing about 80 per cent to the national coffers through crude oil.
His words: “Let me assure you, whatever is wrong with this family (country) we will fix it. Anything that I am involved in must be based on justice, fairness, and goodness for Nigeria.
“Let me assure the people of Bayelsa State, Nigeria has not treated you well, when you were under flood, Nigeria did not care, I was the first person that stopped our rally to visit Bayelsa because Bayelsa was under water. We will ensure that Bayelsa gets its fair share of what they have given to Nigeria.
“All the other parties have made promises to Bayelsa State in the past but did not fulfil it. We are not going to do that, Bayelsa State deserves more than what it is getting today from Nigeria, and I am going to give it to them. Bayelsa must have roads and the best because this is where Nigeria found its first crude oil in commercial quantity.
“Everywhere there is environmental pollution, I will clean it up, Bayelsa will be able to fish and eat fish from their rivers again. Most importantly we are going to dredge Rivers Niger and Benue to stop this flooding to Bayelsa.”
He also pledged to take Nigeria from a consuming country to a production country adding that women and youths will have sensitive positions in his administration.
“This job requires people who are competent, it requires physical and mental, go and check I and Datti’s energy and age, a new Nigeria is possible, Nigeria where people will have jobs is possible, a Nigeria that will compete in the world is possible.”
He also bemoaned the incessant strike in the nation university system promising to end the menace if elected as president.
He said: “We will ensure there is no strike again in our universities, four years will be four years, five years will be five years, I and Datti will secure Nigeria, we will make sure there is rule of law in Nigeria, police will not harass anyone on the road, police will not stop students from carrying their laptops again.
“This is time for Nigerian youths to take up their government, we want to build a Nigeria that Nigerians will be proud to say they are Nigerians, we will support our youths to be very productive.
Earlier at an interactive meeting, the Pan Niger Delta Forum had tabled the demand for federalism before the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi.
Led by the group’s national chairman, Senator Emmanuel Ebok-Essien, Pandef insisted that he must be committed to a true federal structure if elected the president.
The group also stressed the need to consider the East-West road which for over 20years had not been completed as well as reactivation of existing sea ports and also creation of some sea ports in the region so as to boost the economy and employment opportunities for the youths.
